Compare Text and Music: Shuffle Along’s “I’m Just Wild about Harry” | EL Education Curriculum

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ELA 2019 G7:M3:U1:L4

Compare Text and Music: Shuffle Along’s “I’m Just Wild about Harry”

In this Lesson

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Focus Standards: These are the standards the instruction addresses.

  • RL.7.7, L.7.5

Supporting Standards: These are the standards that are incidental—no direct instruction in this lesson, but practice of these standards occurs as a result of addressing the focus standards.

  • RL.7.1, RL.7.4
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Daily Learning Targets

  • I can determine the meaning of figurative language in "I'm Just Wild about Harry." (L.7.5)
  • I can compare the written version of "I'm Just Wild about Harry" to its audio version, analyzing the effects of techniques in each medium. (RL.7.7)

Ongoing Assessment

  • Opening A: Entrance Ticket: Unit 1, Lesson 4 (RL.7.7)
  • Work Time A: Compare Text and Music: "I'm Just Wild about Harry" questions (RL.7.4, RL.7.7, L.7.5)

Agenda

AgendaTeaching Notes

1. Opening

A. Engage the Learner - RL.7.7 (5 minutes)

2. Work Time

A. Read and Analyze "I'm Just Wild about Harry" - RL.7.7, L.7.5 (20 minutes)

B. Build Background Knowledge: "Lift Every Voice and Sing" (10 minutes)

3. Closing and Assessment

A. Add to Museum Collection - RL.7.7 (10 minutes)

4. Homework

A. Compare Text to Music in Favorite Song: Students listen to a favorite song and analyze how the musical techniques add meaning to the lyrics.

Alignment to Assessment Standards and Purpose of Lesson

  • RL.7.7 – Opening A: On an entrance ticket, students explore musical techniques while listening to “I’m Just Wild about Harry.”
  • RL.7.7 – Work Time A: Students independently read the book and lyrics of “I’m Just Wild about Harry” from Shuffle Along, independently analyzing the textual techniques in the song.
  • L.7.5a – Work Time A: Students read and analyze another scene from Shuffle Along and learn to identify and interpret figurative language in the text “I’m Just Wild About Harry.”  
  • RL.7.7 – Closing and Assessment A: Students add Shuffle Along to the class’s museum collection by discussing the artists’ use of techniques and collaboration to make meaning.
  • In this lesson, students focus on becoming effective learners by reading and answering questions independently in preparation for the mid-unit assessment.
  • The Think-Pair-Share protocol is used in this lesson. Protocols are an important feature of our curriculum because they are one of the best ways we know to engage students in discussion, inquiry, critical thinking, and sophisticated communication. A protocol consists of agreed-upon, detailed guidelines for reading, recording, discussing, or reporting that ensure equal participation and accountability in learning.

Opportunities to Extend Learning

  • Release more responsibility more quickly to students as they comprehend the tasks or concepts. For example: 
    • Encourage students who identify the musical techniques more easily to highlight and annotate other areas of interest in the text and share out their findings with peers once all have completed their independent analysis.
    • Also, students can develop their own text-dependent questions and exchange them with peers. Learning to ask and answer one’s own questions about a text is a skill students will need for high school, college, and even in careers.

How It Builds on Previous Work

  • In previous lessons, students have focused on comparing the written lyrics and performance of a song, noting how techniques unique to each medium affect the presentation of the work. In this lesson, students continue this work while practicing independently.

Support All Students

  • Students may need additional support identifying the aspects of musical performance that impact the meaning of the text. As students independently answer questions in this lesson, group those students who are struggling with this work together to be able to more easily offer support. ▲

Assessment Guidance

  • Review students’ Compare: Text and Music: “I’m Just Wild about Harry” questions to ensure their understanding of the relationship between the text and the musical performance.

Down the Road

  • In the next lesson, students will demonstrate their skills in comparing text and music by reading and analyzing a song independently for the mid-unit assessment.

In Advance

  • Ensure there is a copy of Entrance Ticket: Unit 1, Lesson 4 at each student's workspace.
  • Prepare
    • Set up the track "I'm Just Wild about Harry" from Shuffle Along.
  • Post the learning targets and applicable anchor charts (see Materials list).

Tech and Multimedia

  • Opening A: "I'm Just Wild about Harry" song from Shuffle Along
  • Work Time A: "I'm Just Wild about Harry" song from Shuffle Along
  • Continue to use the technology tools recommended throughout previous modules to create anchor charts to share with families; to record students as they participate in discussions and protocols to review with students later and to share with families; and for students to listen to and annotate text, record ideas on note-catchers, and word-process writing.

Supporting English Language Learners

Supports guided in part by CA ELD Standards 7.I.A.1, 7.I.B.5, 7.I.B.6, 7.I.B.8, 7.I.C.10, and 7.I.C.12.

Important Points in the Lesson Itself

  • To support ELLs, this lesson follows the same format and uses the same routines and resources for students to analyze a new song and scene in Shuffle Along. Although, at this point, students are encouraged to work independently, the class does review responses to support students' comprehension. This gradual release to independence prepares students for the assessment in the following lesson. Additionally, students work as a class through a teacher-led activity that will help them build background knowledge about the poet and poem/song they will read and analyze independently on the assessment.
  • ELLs may find it challenging to interpret the text and music techniques even after several days of similar analysis. In addition to the supports in the lesson and suggested below, allow those ELLs who need more support to work independently for several minutes and then share their work with a partner before the whole class share. Doing so will confirm comprehension and identify needs for the assessment.

Vocabulary

  • catalyst (A)

Key

(A): Academic Vocabulary

(DS): Domain-Specific Vocabulary

Materials from Previous Lessons

Teacher

Student

  • Techniques anchor chart (one for display; from Module 3, Unit 1 Lesson 2, Work Time A)
  • Academic word wall (one for display; from Module 1, Unit 1, Lesson 1, Work Time A)
  • Excerpts from Shuffle Along (text; one per student; from Module 3, Unit 1, Lesson 2, Work Time B)
  • Harlem Renaissance packet (one per student; from Module 3, Unit 1, Lesson 1, Work Time A)
  • Vocabulary log (one per student; from Module 1, Unit 1, Lesson 2, Opening A)

New Materials

Teacher

Student

  • Entrance Ticket: Unit 1, Lesson 4 (answers for teacher reference)
  • Audio recording of "I'm Just Wild about Harry" from Shuffle Along CD
  • Compare Text and Music: "I'm Just Wild about Harry" (answers for teacher reference)
  • Techniques anchor chart (example for teacher reference)
  • Entrance Ticket: Unit 1, Lesson 4 (one per student)
  • Compare Text and Music: "I'm Just Wild about Harry" (one per student)
  • Note cards (several per class)

Assessment

Each unit in the 6-8 Language Arts Curriculum has two standards-based assessments built in, one mid-unit assessment and one end of unit assessment. The module concludes with a performance task at the end of Unit 3 to synthesize students' understanding of what they accomplished through supported, standards-based writing.

Opening

OpeningLevels of Support

A. Engage the Learner - RL.7.7 (5 minutes)

  • Repeated routine: Students respond to questions on Entrance Ticket: Unit 1, Lesson 4.
  • Once students have completed their entrance tickets, use a total participation technique to review their responses.
  • Repeated routine: Follow the same routine as with the previous lessons to review learning targets and the purpose of the lesson, reminding students of any learning targets that are similar or the same as in previous lessons.

For Lighter Support

  • Challenge students to answer the questions independently without orally processing with a partner. Then allow students several minutes to share their responses with a partner before the whole class share. Allowing students to grapple will demonstrate how ready they are to respond to these types of questions on the assessment. 

For Heavier Support

  • To help students gradually release to independence, there is no differentiated version of Entrance Ticket: Unit 1, Lesson 4. Challenge students to discuss their responses with a partner before writing. Oral rehearsal increases their confidence and achievement with speaking, listening, and writing skills.

Work Time

Work TimeLevels of Support

A. Read and Analyze “I’m Just Wild about Harry” – RL.7.7 (20 minutes)

  • Review appropriate learning target relevant to the work to be completed in this section of the lesson:

“I can determine the meaning of figurative language in ‘I’m Just Wild about Harry.’”

“I can compare the written version of ‘I’m Just Wild about Harry’ to its audio version, analyzing the effects of techniques in each medium.”

  • Tell students they will be answering questions in a similar way to the previous two lessons but doing so independently. Inform students that first they will answer questions about the text itself. Next, they will listen to the song three times and answer questions each time as they did in previous lessons.
  • Ask students to retrieve their Excerpts from Shuffle Along. Distribute the Compare Text and Music: “I’m Just Wild about Harry.” Remind students that in the previous two lessons they read scenes and songs from Shuffle Along and answered questions about textual and musical techniques and effects. Review the questions and ensure that students understand their task. Release students to independently read the third excerpt of Shuffle Along and then answer the first two questions on the Compare Text and Music Questions: “I’m Just Wild about Harry.”
  • Direct students to listen to the audio recording of “I’m Just Wild about Harry” from Shuffle Along. Follow the same routine as in the previous lesson of playing the song and pausing to give students time to answer each question in the Music section.
  • Once students have completed the note-catcher, review their responses as a class. If many students struggled to find correct responses, model answering the questions, including clarifying what the question is asking, returning to the appropriate section of the text, and eliminating unlikely answers. See Compare Text and Music: “I’m Just Wild about Harry” (answers for teacher reference). As necessary, discuss as a class how the music and text compare and contrast by using the following questions:

“In what ways are the text and musical version different?” (The music is a duet—there are two singers instead of one. Also, the music rises high in volume and the notes, but there is no indication in the text to do so.)

“In what ways are they the same?” (Both the text and music show Jessie’s strong feelings for Harry.)

“Both the text and the music convey the same idea and feeling. What is that idea and feeling?” (Jessie loves Harry.)

“What techniques are used in the text to show that Jessie loves Harry?” (The text uses figurative language such as comparing Harry to “choc’late candy” and “honey from the bee.”)

“What techniques are used in the song to show that Jessie loves Harry?” (The singer raises her voice in volume and to high notes, showing her excitement or passion.) 

  • As necessary, explain to students that whether a note is high or low is called pitch. In this song, the singer often raises her voice to high pitches. Just as when people speak in high pitches, singing in high pitches conveys excitement. Display the Techniques anchor chart and add pitch under Musical Techniques. Consult the Techniques anchor chart (example for teacher reference) as necessary.
  • Repeated routine: Invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning target.

For Lighter Support

  • In Work Time A, challenge students to work independently on the questions. Then allow several minutes for students to share with a partner before the whole class discussion. Doing so will ensure students have sufficient time and support to answer the questions.

For Heavier Support

  • Challenge students to students to work independently to answer the questions. Remind them of their strategies to answer selected response questions, directing them to the anchor chart as necessary: highlight key words in questions and possible responses, try answering questions before looking at the responses, cross out wrong responses, leave questions and come back to them, check the work. Also, remind students that they have answered similar questions throughout the unit in class and for homework. For the short response questions, they can use key words from the selected response questions when appropriate and try to recall the sentence frames they used throughout this unit. There isn't a differentiated material for this activity in order to help gradually release students to independence to prepare them for the assessment.

B. Build Background Knowledge: "Lift Every Voice and Sing" (10 minutes)

  • Direct students to retrieve their Harlem Renaissance packets and ask them to find the article on James Weldon Johnson. Tell students that for their mid-unit assessment they will be reading a poem by Johnson titled "Lift Every Voice and Sing" as well as listening to a musical performance of the poem. Inform students that "Lift Every Voice and Sing" has been recorded by many singers throughout the twentieth century and holds an important place in the Harlem Renaissance and in African American history. 
  • Read the article aloud with the class, or ask for student volunteers to read the article.
  • Use whole class participation techniques to guide discussion of the article, based on the following questions:

"How did Johnson's career embody the idea of collaboration? How is this collaboration similar to the collaboration of Sissle and Blake, the authors of Shuffle Along?" (He worked with his brother to write shows and songs, combining text and music just as in Shuffle Along.)

"What does the author of the article say about the importance of 'Lift Every Voice and Sing'?" (People call it the "black national anthem.")

  • Direct student attention to the third paragraph and ask:

"What is the meaning of catalyst as it is used in the third paragraph? How does it help explain Johnson's influence?" (Catalyst means "beginning" or "cause." It helps explain that some people believed Johnson's book helped start the Harlem Renaissance.) 

  • Add the word catalyst to the academic word wall and invite students to record the word in their vocabulary logs.

"What was Johnson's view of the role of art and literature in the lives of African Americans?" (He believed that it could "improve the conditions of their daily lives" even though they lacked economic power.)

  • Ask students to recall the article they read about Shuffle Along and the comment about how one writer called Shuffle Along the beginning of the Harlem Renaissance as well. Ask students to Think-Pair-Share: 

"What role does collaboration play in the Harlem Renaissance? With all these artists influencing each other, what was the environment of the Harlem Renaissance like?" (It seems that many artists had an influence on each other and the movement as a whole. In these two articles, two different artists are said to have helped start the Harlem Renaissance, which shows there were probably a lot of causes and different influences among writers, artists, and musicians.)

  • Repeated routine: Invite students to reflect on their progress toward the relevant learning target.

For Lighter Support

  • In Work Time B, students may need additional support when reading the article about James Weldon Johnson from the Harlem Renaissance packet. If so, pause after reading each paragraph and allow students to discuss the gist of the paragraph with a partner who needs heavier support. Breaking up the article and identifying the gist of smaller sections will help students solidify comprehension of the whole article.

For Heavier Support

  • In Work Time B, students may need additional support when reading the article about James Weldon Johnson from the Harlem Renaissance packet. If so, pause after reading each paragraph and allow students to discuss the gist of the paragraph with a partner who needs lighter support. Then students can highlight key words and phrases and even draw illustrations in the margins as necessary. Breaking up the article and identifying key words and phrases will help students better comprehend the whole article.

Closing & Assessments

Closing

A. Add to Museum Collection - RL.7.7 (10 minutes)

  • Inform students that they will now add Shuffle Along to the classroom museum collection. As necessary, remind students that at the beginning of the module they set aside this space to collect all the works that they will study from the Harlem Renaissance. Instruct volunteers to place the CD of the play on the museum table, as well as any pictures they may have collected. Students can also be encouraged to bring in objects that will remind them of the musical, such as dance shoes or a musical instrument. As volunteers are placing Shuffle Along in the museum collection, another volunteer can create a placard for it on a note card with the title and authors.
  • Explain to students that as they add more works to the museum collection, they will discuss how the works interact with each other either in terms of theme, language, or other elements. To begin this work ask students to Think-Pair-Share:

"How do writers and singers use different techniques to add to the meaning of their work? How did these artists help to set the stage for the Harlem Renaissance as a movement?" (The writers and musicians showed that by working together they could make their art more powerful and create a lot of enthusiasm. The artists collaborating on Shuffle Along helped to bring African American actors, musicians, and audiences to Broadway, and showed that it was possible for art by African Americans to achieve great popularity.)

  • To include the idea of "collaboration" in the collection, ask a volunteer to write it on a note card and place it in the museum collection, near Shuffle Along. Inform students that they will continue looking at collaborations among different kinds of artists as well as cases where works of art influenced each other.
  • Invite students to reflect on the habits of character focus in this lesson, discussing what went well and what could be improved next time.

Homework

Homework

A. Compare Text to Music in Favorite Song 

  • Students listen to a favorite song and analyze how the musical techniques add meaning to the lyrics.

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